U-Turn
by Lynnlee22
Summary: Dinah and Jonathan run into a few complications in their "no strings attached" relationship
1. Chapter 1

Jonathan Randall had to smile as he reached over to pick up the black lace panties draped 'just so' on the bedpost. For a moment he allowed his mind to wonder… 'If these were here, then what was she wearing when she left?'

He shook his head, running his face over his now-flushed face. Grabbing a towel from the back of the chair, he breathed deeply. "Cold shower," he muttered.

Dinah Marler leaned against the cool brick of the building enjoying the feel of the crisp, autumn air on her face. She smiled as she imagined Jonathan finding the souvenir she'd left him on the bedpost and wondered how long it would take him to start pondering the possibilities. A giggle escaped her lips as she glanced around to make sure no one noticed.

'Any respectable girl always carries a spare pair of panties in her purse, don't they?' Well, maybe not. Maybe just those prone to mid-day trysts with trouble—and if Jonathan Randall was anything, he was trouble.

* * *

"Come on, D...Pick up the phone." The familiar voicemail greeting sounded, dashing his hopes.

He sighed, shoving the phone back into his pocket. It had been nearly two weeks since he'd seen her. Sure, they weren't a couple, he had no hold on her just as she had no hold on him, but somehow he'd come to enjoy their time together.

Jonathan leaned back in the chair, running his hands through his dark hair. His mind raced through every moment of the last time he'd spent with her. Had he done something? Said something? Dinah wasn't the type to hold her tongue. If he'd pissed her off, he would have known it. Wouldn't he?

* * *

Dinah sat on the edge of the bed. How was it possible to feel so many different emotions simultaneously? She watched as the screen on her phone faded to black. He wouldn't stop calling and she knew it. Sooner or later she'd have to face him. Sooner or later he'd have to know.

The knock on the door startled her as she slowly stood to her feet.

"D, you in there?" He pounded on the door, all the frustration from the last two weeks evident in his assault on the dark wood.

Dinah breath caught in her throat as she stood there. Jonathan had been the one thing in her life that wasn't complicated...the one thing with no strings attached-until now.

"D...Come on answer the door! What's the matter with you?"

"Alright already," she hissed as she made her way to the door, ever aware of the potential scene in progress outside her door. Grabbing the door handle, she inhaled deeply and forced a smile.

"Could you keep it down? I can live without the dirty looks from the neighbors."

One look at her brought a sly smile to his face. "Like you care what they think," he sneered, pushing past her into the room. "So you want to tell me why you've been avoiding me lately?"

"Avoiding you?" Her voice shook a little as she tried mightily to feign innocence. She had hoped he wouldn't sense her distance, but even she knew that was naive.

"You don't call, you don't write," he whined coyly. "If I didn't know better I'd think you were tired of me." He flopped onto the bed, turning onto his side to face her. His eye caught on a box in the wastebasket as he reached over to grab it.

Dinah followed his gaze, rushing over towards the bed. "Wait...don't." She lunged towards the box, trying to knock it from his hands.

"Uh..Uh..Uh," he teased, bringing the box towards his chest. "Looks like you've got some secrets," he grinned. Turning the box over in his hands, he glanced down to read the cover.

"Jonathan," she breathed, feeling her heart beat faster.

His eyes widened as he saw the words and he pushed himself up on the bed.

She watched him as the realization hit, as the truth she'd been dreading to tell him became obvious without any spoken words.

Looking up, his eyes met hers as she slowly made her way towards the bed. She sat on the edge, her back to him. They had shared laughs, some drink, their pain, but tonight, it was clear they shared much more.

* * *

He swallowed hard, trying to push the anger, hurt, and fear deeper into his core. For a moment, he'd considered the fact that she had planned this-that perhaps all the times they'd spent together had been a part of her master plan. He was suspicious by nature, no one had ever given him a reason not to be.

As he looked at her now, those thoughts vanished. She sat there, avoiding his gaze, her hands trembling slightly as she brought them to her face. He thought he saw a tear escape her eye.

This was not the look of a master manipulator.

Minutes passed-he didn't know how many, but the silence was making him crazy. He swung his legs over the side of the bed, sitting up beside her.

"Why didn't you..." The words left him as she looked up at him.

"I didn't know for sure until today," she whispered, she looked away again as she felt his eyes weighing heavily on her. She hated feeling like this, especially with him. He was the one person she didn't have to pretend with-the one person she could be herself around without the fear of judgement.

This baby could change everything. She longed for a child, but a baby was definitely not in Jonathan's plans. Looking at him now, she wasn't sure if he was angry or hurt or a combination of the two. Jonathan could be volatile, that was something that had first drawn her to him, but it wasn't on her short list of the qualifications for a good father.

Jonathan turned quickly, raising his hand to his hair.

The quick motion startled her and she flinched, retreating slightly as she looked back at him.

This side of her-the timid, fearful Dinah, wasn't a side he was accustomed to. He didn't like seeing her like this and he certainly didn't like being the person that mad her feel this way.

"Hey," he said softly, reaching out to touch her shoulder. "I'm not mad at you...if that's what you're worried about, you can stop."

She nodded warily, her gaze still not meeting his for long.

He sighed. "And I'm here," he said quietly, taking her hand in his. "For what it's worth, I'm here."

* * *

It was strange being with her like this-in this place, in this position. They never talked much, at least not about anything heavy. As he'd told her more than once, 'They weren't that kind of friends', but this, this silence, this awkward cloud that had settled over them-this wasn't something he was used to.

Dinah was free, simple, fun, uncomplicated. This was...anything but.

He turned towards her, forcing his mouth to open. What he planned to say, he didn't know, but he had to say something.

She lay beside him, her legs curled up just slightly, her eyes closed. He sat still for a moment watching the gentle rise and fall of her chest.

Shaking his head, he stood up. At least one of them could get some sleep tonight he thought, turning to leave. Jonathan stopped as he reached the door, his eyes falling on the folded blanket resting on the bench seat. Carefully he draped it over her, aware even as he did it of how foreign the gesture was to him.

He had done a horrible job of taking care of himself. How the hell was he supposed to take care of someone else?

* * *

She lay perfectly still, waiting until she was certain the door had completely closed behind him, before opening her eyes.

Sitting up slightly, she folded the blanket down. Such a small gesture from him, and yet one that had taken her completely off guard. Jonathan had reacted pretty much the way she'd expected. He'd been shocked, probably to the point of running off for good, but it was the little things like this. The gentle gestures, the moments when he touched her in a way that her feel safe, those moments, rare as they were, made her question everything she thought she knew about Jonathan Randall.

"Don't you worry," she whispered, running her hand across her flat stomach. "No matter what, we'll be fine."


	2. Chapter 2

He looked like hell. "So this is what three nights with no sleep looks like?" he muttered, with a sigh. Running his fingers through his hair he stared at the face in the mirror. Ever since he'd left her room he'd been able to do little but think about her.

In the brief moments of sleep he'd captured, he'd found himself dreaming. The dreams were jumbled. Sometimes there was a teenager, resentful and full of hate. Other times it was a baby, one he watched through a window being raised by another family, a happy couple with a picket fence and a dog named Spot. Sometimes he was in a courtroom signing papers, terminating his rights for being unfit…unfit to be a parent…unfit to be anything really. Usually at that point he'd take in a deep, sharp breath and jolt awake.

Leaving his room was something he hadn't done in days. On one hand he was afraid he would run into his mother. He might have to explain what was wrong with him—she could always tell when something insidious was going on. On the other hand, he might run into Dinah and he'd have to face her…he'd have to admit that he was even more ill equipped to raise a child than she knew. He'd have to disappoint her…that would just be one more person on an ever growing list and he didn't know if he could handle it.

The little green light on his cell phone flashed again. Another voice mail. No doubt Reva calling and wanting to meet for breakfast…or lunch…or dinner…or coffee. He sighed, picking up the phone. Soon she'd be calling the SPD and the last thing he needed was Frank Cooper on his doorstep.

Sighing the pressed the button, bringing the phone to his ear and listening to the message. His mouth went dry as he heard her voice.

"Jonathan…I…I wasn't sure if I should call you or not, but I'm on my way to the hospital and I just wanted you to know….I don't know for sure if….anyway…"

He could hear her shaky breath as she struggled to decide what her next words should be.

"Just forget it," she sighed.

He heard the beep which meant the message had ended, but he pressed the button again and again. What had she meant? Why hadn't she called again? He looked at the screen. Ten minutes ago. She'd called ten minutes ago. He could still get there.

A moment ago, he'd had no idea what to do about this child and now.. He knew how much Dinah wanted a child. She'd never terminate this pregnancy. If she was going to the hospital it was because...

He grabbed his coat and headed for the door.

* * *

He'd listened to the message over and over again on the drive over. Trying to catch some hidden message in her voice, trying to discern some meaning in her tone…He couldn't. The truth was—they didn't talk all that much. He didn't know her that well…at least not that way.

Slamming his hands into the swinging door, he pushed past a nurse as he ran into the crowded emergency waiting area. The desk was surrounded by people all experience varying degrees of emergency, but none of whom seemed to be as mentally tormented as he was.

"Excuse me," he said, trying not to make a complete ass of himself. "I need to know where Dinah Marler is."

The nurse behind the desk glared at him with a look that spoke volumes. "Wait your turn, sir."

"No. You don't understand. She's pregnant and she called me and she said she was on her way here and I don't know what happened or where she is or anything but I….." He looked around at the people in the room. These people didn't care…no one cared…He was nothing…not to them…not to Dinah. But to this baby, he could be somebody. He could be a father…he could make a difference.

The nurse continued typing on the keyboard in front of her.

"Dammit!" Jonathan reached down, snatching the keyboard off the desk and flinging it across the room. "I said, I need to know where Dinah Marler is!"

The nurse stared back at him, blinking slowly. The security guard approached quickly, reaching around back to grab his walkie talkie. The police could be here in seconds and the last thing Jonathan needed was to leave that kind of legacy for his child.

"Look." He held up his hands, surrendering, and stepping backwards. "I'm sorry." He glanced over to the guard and then back over the nurse. "I'm just…I just…I need to know where she is. Please…she's pregnant…it's my baby and I don't know if they're ok…Please." He felt helpless…like his entire world was being dangled in front of him just out of his reach.

The nurse looked up at him. "Bay 4".

"Thank you." He bolted towards the back, not stopping to look back at the guard for confirmation that entering was ok. No one would stop him.

She stared at him as he jerked the curtain open.

"Dinah." Jonathan stood in front of her, surprised to see her in a hospital gown, hooked up to an IV. "What happened?"

"You got my message," she said softly. "I wasn't sure if I should call or not. I didn't mean to worry you….I just thought you might want to know. You didn't have to come all the way up here."

He shook his head. "Wait…wait…you mean…you didn't come here to…" He hesitated. As he looked at her now it appeared obvious that this was no planned visit. Something had happened.

"No!" Her tone betrayed her level of disgust. "I'd never do that. Look, Jonathan—I'm not asking you to do anything here, but I'm not going to get rid of this baby just because it doesn't fit into your plans or because it isn't something that we." She stopped, clutching her stomach. Her face contorted in pain as she drew in a sharp breath.

"What? What is it?" He rushed to the side of the bed, taking her hand in his. "What's wrong?"

"The doctor says it's ok. They've got me hooked up to these monitors. Apparently it's just some cramping…something about the uterine walls." She looked up at Jonathan's face, amused slightly when he averted his eyes. "Too much information, sorry."

"No. It's fine. I just…I'm glad everything's ok." He looked at her again, squeezing her hand a little. "Really glad."

She didn't get him. As soon as she thought she had him all figured out, he'd go and pull something like this. She'd have decided that he was incapable of feeling anything and then he'd show her this side of himself—this side that made her wonder if maybe, just maybe, there was something else, something deeper, inside Jonathan Randall.

"You were worried? Really?"

Jonathan sighed, standing up and taking a few steps away from the bed. "Yeah, I mean…I know at first I didn't really react in the best way, but I didn't expect this you know."

He looked back at her. She was listening to him…really listening which was more than he could say for most of the people in his life. This was one of the reasons he'd always been attracted to her. She knew what it was like to be judged…to have people expect you to screw up and to do things wrong—sometimes for no other reason, than to live up to their expectations.

"I guess now that I've thought about some more…the idea has kind of grown on me."

She was silent for a moment. Jonathan Randall wanted this baby. He wanted to be a father. "Well then," she said softly, gesturing to the chair beside the bed. "Why don't you stick around for a bit. The doctor will be back in a little while. He's going to do an ultrasound."

Jonathan nodded. "You mean we can see it?" It was still a bit of an alien concept to him…the idea of a human being—one he helped create—growing inside of her.

"Yeah," she smiled. "We'll be able to see something…I mean at this point it won't be much, but we can see something..make sure everything's ok." She could tell he was uncomfortable. He had taken a big step today..maybe this was too much. She was pushing too hard. The last thing she wanted was to spook him and have him run off.

"You don't have to stay though. I mean, I'm fine. You can go. I'll get a print out and bring it to you later," she offered.

Did she not want him here? "No. No. I want to stay. I want to be here." He took a seat beside her, pulling the seat closer to the bed. "I know that I'm probably not the person you would have picked, but I'll be here." He paused. "For both of you."

She nodded. Jonathan Randall was a lot of things. He could be hateful, resentful, and cold, but today…he was everything she needed.


End file.
